


Bitter Glory

by MissBlu, wispful_writer (MissBlu)



Category: Warframe
Genre: Blood, Gore, Multi, Original Character(s), Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2020-01-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:01:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21555904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissBlu/pseuds/MissBlu, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissBlu/pseuds/wispful_writer
Summary: It's all a bit tragic, really. Isn't it?A collection of short stories about Warframe tenno OC's.
Kudos: 6





	1. Untitled

The day the Tenno saved me is a day I couldn’t forget. Sometimes I would remember it, and act like it was still happening, like a trance. I suppose I’ve gotten used to the strange looks my teammates give me whenever I have an … episode.

It’s been weeks since the incident. I still feel the slimy appendages around me.

I am a Red Veil operative. I have been so for years. I have gone on many missions with different types of Tennos, most of which have gone the same. They came into the mission after receiving a checkpoint, infiltrating the ship by dropping in from the ceiling.

It was a simple mission really: We get in, hack the Corpus system, and distract the infected while another operative search for supplies. Some Tenno scavenged the ship beforehand, breaking open casings and lockers for loot. It was really weird to watch them rob the enemy before battle, but when they fight ….. it sure is a blood bath.

We were assigned to an Infested Corpus ship to gather stolen resources. As usual, a Tenno dropped in after me. I think they were a . . Valkyr? I’m not good with their names. It was pretty impressive to see her slash around utterly mauling any and all infested insight. Her cry scared me at first, a scream that echoed throughout the halls in a fit of rage. I was afraid that maybe she’d lost her mind, like that one other Warframe … But I eased a bit after watching her rip apart enemies with her claws. They dug into the Infested like butter. Even Ancient Healers seemed to be no match for her, and they were my least favorite infested to deal with.. A thought passed through my mind then, I wonder just how easy it was for her to cut through Grineer armor? I wish I could see it …

That was my mistake. I got distracted in my daydreaming. I should’ve been on my toes.

A horde of infested flooded in when my teammate and I least expect it. They swarmed around us, and they weren’t easing in numbers. I shot one and four more popped up. My teammate ended up being dragged off by one of those Ancients. Alone in the middle of this little mosh-pit, I was completely surrounded. I couldn’t seem to find an opening, and just when I had, an Ancient fucker dragged me back in. My health deteriorated quickly. The scratching, clawing, biting ate away my flesh until when I got down. I hated myself for being defeated, and yet no part of me could find the energy to get up. I laid and stared up at the ceiling, ignoring the creatures that kept swatting at my limp body.

‘This is it,’ I thought. ‘This is the end.’ And not even in the glorious way I’d always hoped it would be: close it all with a bang. Some heroic, brave sacrifice that actually meant something, that actually helped someone in the end. Not in a pathetic corner rotting away to a bunch of zombie creatures.

I closed my eyes and scattered my brain for some clever last words. That’s when I heard the explosion. The ground rumbled and the Infected screeched out. My eyes flashed open but my mind was too slow to follow along. I frantically searched for the origin of the sound of the bullets.

I never even saw them in action. And even so…I saw them for a second. Just the dead carcasses around me, and the flashing of red. They stared down at me blankly, before helping me back to my feet. The strands of red hair hung loosely to one side, the energy color the same as fire. I had heard of them before, others spoke of seeing a red so deep one imagined that they were inflamed, yet without any sensation of heat. A fire red color … or rather, a fire without heat was what the legend called them. The red devil. Another indicator that death was near if you were their enemy. One could never be too sure who was their enemy one day or the next, either. I was thankful that in the case I was considered to be an ally, though seeing the still warframe I thought it was mocking me for being weak, which I rightfully deserved. I had seen other Tennos do this to each other and their pets. But … the Warframe was nowhere near me. I only saw the kid for a second before they vanished again and the Warframe ushered me out the room. It led me to a closet. Lockers lined the darkened walls, and my companion laid in the middle of the floor, breathless.

I went to the infirmary after extracting, though I had no signs of infection.

Sometimes I still see that Tenno kid around in the relay, and it relieves me to know that I’m not insane. I even proved it to my own teammates. Although they didn’t look at me so strangely anymore, their faces still always gave away their thoughts: that the legend is true. I smiled and waved at the ki- … Tenno. They stared at me blankly for so long I thought that maybe they didn’t recognize me after all … But right before I turned away they waved back.


	2. Blue Eyes

Few legends spread throughout the void and the rest of space. Many of them were tales much older than any of them combined. Even the one of her, wasn’t quite a legend. She was infamous though, to say the least. Few lived to tell the tale, and those that survived barely remembered the original details they wanted to share. It was whispered in the battlefield, among Corpus and Grineer alike. Hardly any actually remembered the Tenno’s name, but all spoke of her eyes. Her eyes were said to be the most, and even perhaps even the only, striking thing about her. She usually kept her head covered, with her mouth concealed. 

“Snake eyes,” some were mistaken to believe in their last moments of death. But no, no snake, or hardly any other living being for that matter, had white irises. Maybe they were lasers or distant white lights. Like a fool, an enemy once approached in the darkness. He stopped, as the more he stared at them, the more the outer edges of the circles faded into blue. It was then, the mind might wander, if one was seeing a spirit. Maybe some vengeful soul that they had wronged before. Eyes that knew too much, seen everything, judged far much more than simple movements. A paranoia spread throughout his body, one that didn’t last long.

“They’re the eyes of the devil,” some said. The last thing you saw before death. Although granted, there were a lot of things that signified one’s end. Eyes certainly weren’t particularly high on the list. 


	3. Pay What's Due

“All clear,” I call behind to my teammates. I turn away from the massacre that laid before me: dead bodies laid haphazardly along the floor. Blood lined the walls, albeit not much. Most of the Grinner were burned away, those that survived were rotting away ever so slowly, their flesh browning away into a molten puddle on the floor. Only bones remained, some full skeletons, others had them jutting out from the flesh unseeingly.

I checked the last room: a small storage closet filled with lockers. Some were pried open, the door hanging on its hinges. Others glowed red, refusing to reveal its contents. A few stray dollars remained, otherwise, the place was ransacked.

I reported back to the comm room – many others from my fleet had already arrived. They stood on guard, albeit most of them looked bored, clutching their guns and waiting for the commander’s instruction. I approached him slowly. The commander sat only slightly with his back towards the door, his right side was still exposed to everyone behind him just a bit. But he was much too enamored with what was in front of him – a large screen divided into smaller sections. Each screen filled with the aftermath of their last mission. He watched everything from this room, I knew because he did so every time he joined our missions. I had the horror of witnessing the warfare myself, and for some reason, I swore to myself never to do that again. I much preferred to be in action, keep my mind busy, have something to do, rather than sitting idly by and seeing everything unfold.

The commander pulls away from the screen, a wicked smile that reached ear to ear. He stares at me for a moment, whatever psychotic break he was experiencing melted away, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

“Ah,” he offers after an awkward break, “Eros, good job. Everything is clear.”

Yes. It was. Cameras were deceiving, they had blind spots. Some rooms didn’t have cameras at all. Some closets and pocket spaces here, some overly large room there, and someone was bound to go unaccounted for. That was fine. That was the easy part.

But something still bothered me.

“Si r- “ I began.

A familiar sound. A beep, heavy metal moving.

She stood in the doorway, alone. The same way she helped us complete the mission. Dried blood stuck to her claws, and her weapon still leaked smoke from the gun hole. She approached us.

The commander left my side to meet her as well, “Good job slaughtering those dogs, betrayer.” He stood before the Valkyr, eyeing her up.

“Maybe you should work for us,” he places a hand on its shoulder.

It turns its head, glancing at his hand a moment before slapping it away. It took one step closer, but the surrounding troops raised their guns. I raised mine as well but prayed no one noticed that I was clenching mine a bit too tightly. Or that my heart was beating too loudly. Something about this Tenno was unsettling. But just what was it exactly? Something about it felt a bit different than the others, and that set me on edge.

“Make sure I get my reward,” it growled, pointing one of its talons at the commander’s chest.

I opened my mouth, warning the betrayer to move back from the commander, but he chuckles. He offers a stiff nod with a twitch of a smile, then the betrayer turns and leaves.

* * *

I entered the commander’s office.

“Sir,” he jumped from his desk, looking up at me with wide eyes.

“Another report,” I offered, setting the papers onto his desk. It was already covered in folders, papers spilling out at all angles. I know he was writing up and sending off triple copies of reports, but it seemed like there were more of them than usual. Ever since time has passed since we last saw the betrayer, the commander has been on edge.

He stands from his desk, sighing heavily. “I should take a break.”

He rubs his eyes, then makes his way towards the door, “Follow me.”

We went to the comm station. I’m sure the commander was checking his inbox or something, but it didn’t really feel like any sort of break. I busied myself by doing routine work, making sure all the systems were up and running, and doing the procedural checks.

As soon as the routine checks finished, the security alarms bellowed, echoing throughout the halls. My hands flew to my pistol immediately, without thinking. In the distance, I could hear someone shout, and a thud hit the ground. Some gunshots sounded out but were quickly cut off.

Silence. A moment passes, and I begin approaching the door. It opened before I fully reached it. Something bright flashed before my eyes, and then I felt something hard slam against my back, then a few seconds later something else hard hit my right side.

“Amazing, such power!” I heard the commander’s voice ring out as I tried to regain my senses. I smelled blood and burning flesh, but I couldn’t see much. Someone was laughing. The view of the room was spinning and fading in and out, figures dividing and combining back together. Damn it, get it together, Bidd!

The betrayer, it was back again. It stood in front of the commander, holding him by the throat and raising him into the air.

“I had to see you in person again!” No one else said a word.

The commander coughed as the betrayer’s fist clenched tighter around his neck. I made no effort to move. I mean, how could I? Save the same man who lead an enemy to us? Even if I saved him, how would this be explained to the higher-ups?

“W-wait, listen to me!” The commander began again, in between short, hard breaths, “I know you’ve been receiving my messages! We can work toge-“ The betrayer cuts him off. He gargles, gasping for more air.

The thing grips his head with it’s other hand, its claws digging into the sides of his face. It pulled him closer, growling in an almost indecipherable voice:

“Pay what is due.”

He points to the lockers to his left. I hadn’t paid any mind to them, but one of them was unlocked. “I-In there!”

It glances at the locker. His skull still in its hands, it approaches the locker and opens it. It grabs the Exilus Adapter. Without turning its head, the betrayer crushes the commander’s head. The snapping of bones and squishing of flesh echoes in my ears, archived in the many identical sounds I’ve heard before. His body fell to the ground with a soft thud.

I laid there motionless. He betrayed our cause. He betrayed us. He lured this . . . this monster to us by baiting it with some stupid reward! He killed us all, the bastard! I can’t believe it! I sat there, unmoving, fuming, even as the pressure on my head increased. I ignored the betrayer that placed it’s foot on my head and pushed down. I screamed, something unworldly and feral. Something that didn’t sound like my own voice as everything went black. 


	4. Awakening Storm

_ “I cannot make my anger beautiful, I cannot make my pain sweet.” _

It came as a surprise, that evening when Red had finished arguing with Ordis. In a flash, Ordis had decided to purge his personal belongings in order to give Red their own personal quarters. Sly, it was. Because he knew damn well if Red wasn’t away on a mission at the time, they would’ve stopped Ordis from throwing away his own belongings. All those things which they never saw, were from the Old War, Ordis mentioned in passing. There was no getting any of those things back. 

But upon entering the room, it was immediately apparent that everything was not completely purged. Sure, the floor was clean and polished, the shelves shined, the fish tank was clear, the viewing glass dusted . . . But there, in the Lua Vignettes was someone tangled in the white, candescent branches. They were unmoving, their muscles relaxed. It seemed as though maybe they were only sleeping on top of strange furniture.

Red blinked. 

“Oh no! Pardon my mistake, Operator. It appears I missed a spot. Don’t worry, I will get rid of this immediately-”

“No!”

Silence passed. Red swallowed, biting back an apology for the harshness of their voice.

“No, Ordis, please. I . . . Just let me see something.”

“Operator?”

Red approached the Vignette slowly. A part of them held their breath, as if the slightest sound would break them from their sleep. They stood at the edge of the Vignette, placing their palms against the cold of the metal’s edge. 

Empty. The feeling raced down to the pit of their stomach. Whoever it was, it felt eerily as if no one was home. Perhaps they had gotten their hopes up for nothing. After all, the metal was rustic, the skin hard and cold to the touch, the body was immovable. And yet . . . 

“I can fix this.”

“Operator, no! We have no idea what that thing is, let alone where it came from!”

“Ordis, trust me on this. I can fix her.”

Ordis remained silent for a moment, studying his operative through the security camera. Just what in the world were they thinking? Trying to tamper with such a thing? Damn the stars that he didn’t get rid of it properly. 

Ordis let out a sigh, as he knew just how stubborn his Operator is. There was no convincing them otherwise now. 

“If you wish, Operator. Ordis will put her into stasis.”

And with that, Red had helped carry the entity to the foundry. Ordis scanned them and identified what needed fixing: 50 more rubedo, a new morphic, and another control module for the fried systems. It didn’t take long at all to get them fixed up, whatever damage was left was easily replaced. But would it work? The damage was severe, and despite being easily fixed, there was no telling if the new replacements would work properly. 

But it was worth a try. 

Red removed them from the foundry, stood them up, and waited. 

Nothing. 

Perhaps something else was needed? Red thought to ask Ordis for a second scan, but then they twitched. An ear-splitting noise resounded, like the cracking of bones. Another twitch, and then it stepped forward. It screamed then, although the realization hadn’t hit Red until after they had covered their ears. It only lasted a second, though, as then they lunged at Red. They swiped, their nails digging into the flesh across their chest and ripping it back. Red gritted their teeth and groaned in pain. 

“Operator! We must get rid of them!”

“No, Ordis wait! I’ll calm her down first,”

“Operator-”

Whatever Ordis said after that droned out. Red grabbed their arm, gripping the cold touch of metal around her wrist. The light swirls, colors melting into a bright blob before fading away. Cold air hit their skin, leaving goosebumps in its trail. Red glanced all around themselves, but was met with pitch blackness in every direction. They tried to move, but not even the tingle of numbness responded back to them. Had they fainted?

They remained there, unmoving in the darkness, unable to tell how much time was passing. It wasn’t until shapes began forming in the darkness, that Red had realized that their mind had gone blank. 

They blinked. Once. Twice. Lines faded into existence, it seemed. Although it wasn’t as pitch black as before, there was still no light source. The lines were thick, evenly placed apart from one another before disappearing along the left and right. Were they . . . bars?

Suddenly a light appears from the left, blinding Red. Whatever it was approached, seemingly directing the light at their face on purpose. Whoever it was, Red couldn’t tell. Not until his raspy voice called out:

“Ah, you’re awake again. Good, there are still more tests for you to perform.”

“Alad V,” Red growled, her blood boiling. But no sound came from her mouth. By instinct, naturally her jaw would clench from the mere stench of Alad’s sweat, and yet they felt no tension between their teeth. Maybe the transference had worked after all.

Or maybe she spoke too soon, the blackness returned and swallowed them whole. Leaving them unfeeling again. It didn’t last long, but it wasn’t a pleasant feeling. When they faded back in, the bright light blinded them once more. Red could hear Alad say something, but it was much too muffled to know what. He was stifled, distant, like a voice trying to reach ears through the echo of water. Grey rectangles faded in . . . platforms. They were standing on one, in fact. Floating in the brightness of white nothing. A training room? Corpus robotics stood in front of them. Were they always there?

“Move!”

A shock bolted through them, reverberating off of their bones. Something escaped them, a scream that didn’t sound like their own. The pain was much more excruciating than they expected, and yet something about this felt familiar. Red watched as they lost control, lunging and digging their claws into metal. Ripping it apart, the sound of alloys scratching, crashing, bending under all the pressure. It was satisfying, but it wasn’t enough. They needed more, much more. The feel of ores against her claws wasn’t enough. Claws?

“That’s good. That’s enough.”

The shock feeling returned again. Another scream, it didn’t feel like theirs. Didn’t sound like theirs. Their body was too callous to scream. Or rather, perhaps they were void of one currently in the first place. So just who was this person? The yell was different from before. Less animalistic, more human. It was a higher tonation, and almost a bit sorrowful, instead of rage. 

But just as quickly as it came, it was gone again.

The pain lingered, and it wasn’t until Red realized that they had collapsed and was staring at Alad’s shoes that the shock had gone. They could suddenly feel again, and they felt like shit. 

But the darkness had returned to claim them. 

When Red awoke again, they felt as if a significant amount had passed. But their body remained just as tired as before. It was heavy, and every muscle ached. Each joint screamed, begging to rest. Sometimes, Red would attempt to move, only for their body to refuse, and instead lock in place. 

Sometimes, Red spent hours just lying on the cold, hard floor. Staring at nothing in the dark. Sometimes, they clawed at their neck, screaming their voice hoarse. They did all they could to rip the metal collar away, but it remained. Sometimes, Alad would show up, and she would take joy in fighting the corpus robots. Sometimes he would change the schematics, and introduce a stronger enemy that took longer to kill. Sometimes they didn’t always kill an enemy either. They would fight for days, endlessly, taking hit after hit until Red was sure they weren’t breathing anymore. Until they were sure there was nothing left in their body to break. And yet still, they fought. 

They scratched, and clawed, and punched, and bit, and kicked at even the slightest thing. Sometimes it was at themselves, to will their body to move when it refused. Only to do more punching and scratching and kicking and clawing. 

Sometimes Red forgot who they were. And that whatever was going on was real, until the darkness came to claim them. But this feeling, this sensation. It was all too familiar. Being used, and controlled by someone else. But more importantly,  **the rage** . Red had always been hot-headed, they think. But why did such sensations of vexation come so naturally?

Maybe the transference failed. Maybe they were trapped here forever with this person. It certainly felt that way. Red had given up thinking about it anyway. 

It wasn’t until they couldn’t possibly move anymore that it all finally ended. Red lay silently on the floor, unable to scream any longer, as their voice had left them. And even their body was too damaged to go on any longer. Alad came and towered over them, stopping the robotics from continuing the “test”.

“It seems as though this was a bit too much for you, Valkyr. How disappointing.”

_ Fuck you, Alad.  _

He kneeled, picking them up in his arms and carrying her off.

_ Get your filthy fucking hands off of me. _

Alad disappeared, and a bright light claimed his place. Before they knew it, Red recognized the dark maroon of their orbiter. Feeling returned to them, they felt conscience for what felt like ages. Air filled their lungs, and with every breath, rage entered with it. Every hair stood on it’s end as they could feel their skin grow hot. Their breathing came out hard and ragged. Red looked up at Valkyr, who had moved away from their touch and curled up in the corner. She was near the door of their personal quarters, but something told them not to get near.

“Operator, are you all right?”

“ . . . I’m fine Ordis, I think I understand her better now.”

Ordis didn’t respond. Instead, he watched Valkyr as she watched Red. She certainly wasn’t as aggressive as before, but her demeanor wasn’t entirely calm. 

“It seems as though her Neuroptics are damaged.”

_ Damn. _

And so they both remained at a standstill. Red had the extra parts for Valkyr in their inventory already, but each time they got too close, Valkyr would attack. Sometimes she would swipe near their legs, or growl if they got too close. In extreme cases, Valkyr would scream at Red. These were days she seemed especially distressed, perhaps the ghost of her memories haunting her again. 

Days passed of seemingly no progress. Red would approach Valkyr as close as she would allow, and talk to her. About nothing in particular. Whether is was their day, or a particular mission, or even to complain about her friends, they told Valkyr. She never showed any reaction to any of it, she didn’t move or turn her head. Was she even listening? It sure felt like she wasn’t.

But she was. Every word Red spoke was some solace. It was much better than silence. How she loathed the silence. The endless nothing that made her mind run rampant. She hated the darkness even more, she hated sleeping. Red didn’t sleep, like her. Red was restless at night, just as much as she was. And during the hours where only their demons would accompany them anymore, they were near each other. Sure, there was still little to do. But it was a bit better, almost. 

“Hey,” Red said suddenly one particular such night, “I want to give you a new name. Can I?”

A new name? For what reason? Valkyr regarded herself very little, it didn’t matter to her what she was called. Maybe it did once. 

“It would give you a new start,” Red pressed, “because regardless of what you want to do now, what happened before is gone.”

Erase the past? What nonsense. There was no taking away what happened to her. What  _ he  _ did to her. Her own body refused to let her forget. Not when she still saw his ghost in the shadows, or jumped at the domestic drone, or craved for the destruction of alloys. 

“It’s what I did. What I had to do, to keep me whole.”

Whole? Was she breaking? Was she tearing herself apart? No, she didn’t want to be the victim. She didn’t want to be a scared, fragile thing cowering in the corner. Not anymore. Not ever again. More than anything, she wanted to hurt everything just as much as she had. Valkyr wanted to break flesh and bone, wanted to consume blood. Wanted nothing more than to leave a trail of broken things in her path. 

But this person - Red, was it? Something about them told her that they understood. They knew what it was like - blinding rage. They had woken her up, fixed her . . . They hadn’t hurt her either.

Valkyr nodded, slowly, hesitantly. Red smiled, despite Valkyr being unable to speak exactly what she was agreeing to. 

“Good, let’s call you Kadin then.”

  
  



End file.
